Explore every episode of the podcast Play Ready Golf | Strokes Gained for the 9 to 5 Golfer

Free card, The 3x15 Week (the 3 practice sessions from this episode): https://playready.golf/3x15

Try the Play Ready Golf app free for 30 days on the web, code PRGPOD for $20 off every year: https://app.playready.golf

Free guide, How Good Are Your Shots? Benchmarks for your level: https://playready.golf/shots

Three scored 15 minute sessions a week is enough to keep your golf game over the winter. Isaak and Hayden start with what a month off does (golfers who haven't played in 30 days beat their normal score a little over 1 time in 4), what fades first, why short scored sessions beat one long one, and why approach comes first if you can see a number. Then the exact week: an approach session on a simulator, a putting session at home and a chipping session to a towel, each with a score to beat.

Chapters

0:00 What a month off does to your first round back

1:26 What winter takes first

4:53 Why 45 minutes a week is enough

6:51 Short scored sessions beat big ones

9:38 You learn by failing, not by watching

13:47 Approach first: 40% of the gap

16:06 Sim mats vs real turf

18:21 Too many simulator numbers

20:23 The only 3 numbers I track

22:44 The number nobody checks: descent angle

24:18 Hayden's first event back

27:00 Why you need a plan on a simulator

30:12 Isaak's winter plan

32:27 Session 1: approach on the sim

34:40 Session 2: putting at home

36:35 Session 3: chipping to a towel

37:49 If you usually take the winter off

39:28 What the app data shows

41:39 The one thing to remember

50 lifetime spots: https://app.playready.golf

Coaches: PRG Teams is at https://playready.golf/teams

Questions: isaak@playready.golf

Sources

Lou Stagner, Arccos data (Newsletter #18): golfers with no round in the last 30 days beat the median of their last 20 rounds 28% of the time. Golfers with 16 or more rounds that month, 57%.

Arthur and colleagues, 1998, Human Performance, 53 articles: after time off, accuracy tasks lost about 3 times as much as speed tasks. Lab tasks, and speed means how fast a task gets done, not swing speed.

Dail and Christina, 2004: 90 new golfers hit the same 240 putts, all in one day or 60 a day for 4 days. The spread out group was better 1 day, 1 week and 1 month later.

Arccos via MyGolfSpy, Jul 2026, about 329,000 rounds: approach is about 40% of the gap between one handicap level and the next.

TrackMan tour averages: 7 iron land angle 50 degrees on the PGA Tour, 47 on the LPGA Tour.

Lou Stagner, Arccos data (Newsletter #140): from 150 yards, a 15 handicap hits a good shot (90% of the distance, within 10 yards of the line) about 3 times in 10.

Play Ready Golf app data: golfers who posted 6 or more rounds this year improved about 2 shots on average.

Free guide, How Good Are Your Shots? Page 2 has the benchmarks for your level: https://playready.golf/shots

Try the Play Ready Golf app free for 30 days, code PRGPOD: https://app.playready.golf/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep46

Your handicap isn't your average. It's built from your best 8 rounds out of your last 20, so a 15 handicap who shoots 94 is having a normal day, not a crisis. Isaak and Hayden walk through what a normal round and a bad round look like from a 20 handicap to scratch, why Scottie Scheffler still had a 12 shot range last season, the 3 kinds of holes most likely to turn into a double in 453 rounds of Play Ready Golf app data, and a 10 minute review that tells you what to practice next week.

Chapters

0:00 Your handicap isn't your average

2:34 How your handicap actually works

3:17 How often golfers shoot their handicap

5:47 A 10 and a 20 make the same bogeys

6:54 A normal round at every level, 20 to scratch

11:27 Scheffler and Rory have bad rounds too

13:21 The 3 holes that turn into doubles

16:18 Hayden's worst round

20:31 The 10 minute bad round review

23:51 What to practice at your level

24:57 Why realistic expectations help you score

29:02 When a bad round is a real signal

30:43 What to do after your next round

Coaches: PRG Teams is at https://playready.golf/teams

Questions: isaak@playready.golf

Sources

World Handicap System (USGA and R&A): your Handicap Index is the average of your best 8 score differentials from your last 20 rounds; net double bogey is the most you post on a hole.

USGA handicap research, old system (best 10 of 20): golfers shot their course handicap or better about 25% of the time, about 3 strokes worse on average.

Lou Stagner, Arccos data: a 17 shot median gap between a golfer's best and worst round in a season (30+ rounds, steady handicap), plus the tour expectation numbers.

Shot Scope user data: fairways, greens, bogeys, doubles, three putts and penalty strokes by handicap.

PGA Tour: Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, 2025 season.

Play Ready Golf app: 453 rounds from 127 golfers, Nov 2025 to Oct 2026.

Go look at the bottom of your pitching wedge. It probably says 42 or 43. In the 1980s it said 49, and your sand wedge barely moved.

Get the free Wedge Matrix (one page, every wedge, every swing): https://playready.golf/wedge-matrix

Try the Play Ready Golf app free for 30 days: https://app.playready.golf

That's a hole in your bag the industry made, and most golfers never check it. So they end up with two wedges that go the same distance and one gap they guess at every round. Hayden and I break down how the bottom of your bag got broken, how to find the hole in yours in about 2 minutes, and a winter plan that gives you a number for every wedge and every swing.

This isn't a gear episode. Most of the fix is checking the lofts you already have, and the rest is one bucket of balls this winter.

Chapters

0:00 Your pitching wedge used to say 49

1:56 How much loft your pitching wedge lost

4:00 How close tour pros really hit it from 100 yards

5:21 How the bottom of your bag got broken

9:17 What tour players actually carry

9:58 Should you carry 4 wedges?

12:38 The club you carry because everyone else does

13:56 The problem with the 60 degree

17:46 Dave Pelz, Tom Kite and the first 60

19:16 Fix 1: check your gaps (4 to 6 degrees)

21:29 Fix 2: bounce and grind, made simple

25:21 Fix 3: when your grooves are worn out

27:52 Fix 4: the Wedge Matrix (Pelz's 3x4)

28:53 Why your 9 o'clock number matters

31:16 How to fill in your matrix this winter

33:08 When 4 wedges is the right call

34:08 How much wedges really matter

35:13 What to do tonight

36:02 What we're changing in our own bags

Two fixes from the episode, also on screen: Ping's G440 went from 5 set wedges to 4 (fewer, not more). And a 15 handicap's double rate from 200 yards is about twice what it is from 150 (29% vs 15.6%), not 3 times.

Sources

Pitching wedge loft by decade: loftchart.com

2025 lofts: Callaway Elyte and Ping G440 spec sheets; Today's Golfer on the G440 wedge change

Tour proximity from 100 yards: PGA Tour stats

Finishing 75+ feet away, and double rates by distance: Lou Stagner, Arccos data

What tour players carry: Golfing Focus, top 100 PGA Tour players

Wedge gapping (4 to 6 degrees, 10 to 15 yards): Titleist Vokey

Tom Kite and the 60 degree: Golf Channel, World Golf Hall of Fame

Groove wear: Titleist's own robot testing; MyGolfSpy

The 3x4 system: Dave Pelz, GOLF Magazine, 1990

Pitches that find the green vs miss it: Play Ready Golf app, 453 rounds from 127 golfers

Long game share of the scoring gap: Mark Broadie, Every Shot Counts

15 handicap 4 iron distance: Shot Scope

Kris Marshall didn't touch a golf club until he was 16. He sent his resume to 500 colleges and got zero responses, walked on at Kansas anyway, and left a two-time All-American. Today he's a +5 with a full-time career, three kids, and barely any practice time.

We get into how he walked on at KU, six trips to Q School (four of them lost by a single shot), why he walked away from pro golf to start a family, and what he thinks about the reinstatement debate. Then he shares the forward tees drill that teaches you to go low, and why a 10 handicap should stop aiming at pins.

HOPEKIDS: the charity Kris founded a golf tournament for, serving families of children with life-threatening illnesses

https://hopekids.org/

FREE: 18 Golfers, 1 Question. What 18 elite mid-ams with day jobs say busy golfers get wrong about practice, plus their go-to drills

https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam

PLAY READY GOLF APP: practice plans built from your strokes gained and the time you actually have. 30 days free, and code PRGPOD takes $20 off the year.

https://app.playready.golf/

Feedback or a topic idea? isaak@playready.golf

CHAPTERS

0:00 What a 46-year-old knows that college kids don't

1:56 He didn't start golf until 16

3:10 500 colleges, zero responses

4:14 Sitting in the rain outside the KU coach's office

5:15 The walk-on trial: the only one under par

6:46 From walk-on to two-time All-American

11:43 Turning pro: "You don't have to, you get to"

17:05 Six trips to Q School

19:17 Why he walked away from pro golf

21:44 Reinstatement and the "true amateur" argument

24:13 Kris's fix for reinstatement

27:50 What makes a great mid-am event

35:29 How golf built his career

37:52 The 14 handicap who was nervous to play with a +5

41:48 How to go low: play the forward tees

43:37 Late to the tee, then four eagles at the Kansas Open

45:44 Set a scoring goal and don't move it

46:22 Chess, not checkers, off the tee

47:44 Data vs feel

51:28 What a 10 handicap should fix this week

53:12 22-year-old Kris vs 46-year-old Kris

56:50 HopeKids

Free 3x15 Week card (the 3 dials, every session scored): https://playready.golf/3x15

Play Ready Golf app, free 30 day trial, code PRGPOD: https://app.playready.golf

Ep. 27, why the range is the most expensive habit in your bag: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0R9mVHabK0c

If you went 10 for 10 at the range last night, you didn't practice. You performed.

Adam Young, one of the best practice coaches in golf, wants his players making somewhere between 3 and 7 out of every 10. Most of us build every range session around never missing. That's why the good nights never show up on Saturday.

In this episode, Isaak and Hayden get into how much you should actually be missing, what Rory McIlroy did after blowing the 2011 Masters, and the 3 dials (distance, target size and randomness) that make any drill show up on the course.

Hayden also tells the full story of his 2024 Canadian Q School week in Dothan, Alabama. He was 7 under after two rounds. Then came a double on a 200 yard par 3, a misread tee time and a DQ before the final round. He shares what he does differently now.

Tell us in the comments: what's your next drill, and how many out of 10 do you make?

Studies and people we mention:

Adam Young, The Practice Manual

Guadagnoli and Lee (2004), the challenge point framework

Robert Bjork, desirable difficulties

Wilson et al. (2019), Nature Communications, the 85% rule

Human Movement Science (2025), when a task gets too hard

Jared Porter, LSU, moving from blocked to random practice

Low and colleagues, 14 studies on pressure training

Annie Duke, Thinking in Bets

Sisk et al. (2018), the growth mindset meta-analysis

Chapters:

0:00 Why 10 for 10 at the range is a bad sign

1:59 How much should you be missing?

3:08 Adam Young's 3 to 7 out of 10 rule

4:00 The 3 dials that change any drill

4:31 There's no such thing as a good drill

5:26 Why easy practice feels so good

6:46 The 85% rule for faster learning

7:34 When hard practice backfires

7:49 Signs your practice is too easy

10:26 What Rory did after the 2011 Masters

10:48 Rory's 496 for 496 inside 3 feet

14:54 Hayden's Q School blowup

17:23 The tee time mistake

19:42 How Hayden bounced back

22:04 Handling emotions after a miss

24:20 The 3 part plan

24:29 Part A: turn one dial

26:57 Add a consequence: Colby's match

28:56 Part B: stop judging by results

30:41 The 3 buckets for every miss

31:37 Part C: is growth mindset enough?

32:37 Playing to your personality

35:50 Ask: how many did I actually miss?

36:31 Isaak's GC3 ladder drill

37:37 Hayden's takeaway

40:15 New Friday schedule

New schedule: episodes with just Isaak and Hayden now drop every Friday. Guest episodes are bonus episodes early in the week.

Isaak is a competitive mid-am who helps busy golfers improve with the time they already have. Hayden is a professional golfer. Play Ready Golf helps you practice with purpose, so you show up to the first tee ready to score.

Secrets of the elite mid am 👉 https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam

Want a practice plan built for your game and your schedule? Try Play Ready Golf free for 7 days. Code ISAAK takes $20 off the year 👉 https://playready.golf/the-app

Sam Jackson sells windows for a living. He has a 7 month old at home and practices once or twice a week. He's also been South Carolina Golf Association Player of the Year 4 years in a row, made the semifinals of the 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur, and won the 2025 South Carolina Amateur with a wedge to 3 inches on the final hole.

His edge isn't his swing. It's caring less. Golf used to be his #1 priority. Now it's 4th or 5th, and he plays better for it. In this episode he explains how to stop living and dying with every shot, the 3 checks he runs every time he practices, and why his best week in golf came after his worst prep.

You'll learn:

Why a 4x Player of the Year calls himself a mediocre college player

How to take the pressure off every single shot

Why he's hit it great and finished 7th, then hit it average and contended

The 3 fundamentals he checks every session

How he got into contention on 4 rounds in 4 months with a newborn

Where to start when you have an hour at the range and no plan

Follow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samuelnotljackson

Need windows or doors in the Columbia, SC area? Sam's with Pella Windows and Doors of the Carolinas.

0:00 Not that Samuel Jackson

1:08 Starting golf at 12

2:30 What sped up his development

4:23 The U.S. Junior at 15

5:09 A 74.8 college scoring average

6:53 Treating every shot like the one

7:58 How to stop living and dying on every shot

8:22 The mental game beats the physical by a mile

9:01 Golf went from #1 to #5

10:35 Make golf as meaningless as possible

10:56 Less pressure at a D2 school

11:33 Staying sharp with a newborn

13:12 The 17 Golfers cheat sheet

13:41 4 rounds in 4 months, then the final group

15:07 How he picks what to practice

16:11 Where to start with an hour and no plan

17:44 The Play Ready Golf app

18:19 His 3 checks: grip, ball position, alignment

20:12 A $70 indoor winter setup

21:44 Getting away from the golf course

23:40 What golf can teach his daughter

26:00 Why he doesn't set goals

27:40 The 2023 U.S. Mid-Am and Stewart Hagestad

29:06 Bad prep, best week

30:58 The walk off at the 2025 South Carolina Am

33:38 Merion with his wife on the bag

36:43 The one thing to steal from Sam

38:01 It won't be on your tombstone

38:22 Where to find Sam

FREE: Secrets of the Mid-Am 👉 https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam

The Play Ready Golf App (7 Days Free) 👉 https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Roughly 800 former pros apply to regain their amateur status every year, and virtually all are approved. This week at the U.S. Mid-Amateur, 7 of the 8 quarterfinalists were reinstated amateurs, and so are both finalists.

Career amateur TJ Shuart, a veteran of 12 USGA championships, joins Isaak to ask whether a reinstated pro is ever really an amateur again. They walk through why the USGA built the Mid-Am in 1981, the news that brought this to a head, and the toughest counterarguments. Then TJ lays out a simple fix: a waiting period based on how long you played as a pro and how high you got.

Every player discussed followed the rules as written. This conversation is about the rules.

Feedback or a topic idea? isaak@playready.golf

CHAPTERS

0:00 Preview

0:27 The fork in the road: pro or lifelong amateur

2:31 Why the USGA built the Mid-Am in 1981

4:30 TJ Shuart's career as an amateur

7:22 The Mid-Am 20 years ago

12:09 The numbers: 800 reinstatements a year

17:22 How we got here: Knost, the USGA pause, and Sposa

28:11 "Those guys stopped playing years ago"

34:20 Is a reinstated pro the same player?

38:21 The Stewart Hagestad question

42:21 Challenge 1: college players

43:44 Challenge 2: NIL money

46:51 Challenge 3: should pros ever come back?

49:19 TJ's fix: a tiered waiting period

54:43 The reinstated players, by the numbers

1:04:26 What John Peterson said

1:11:09 Where the USGA review stands

1:16:23 Mid-Am update: 7 of 8 and both finalists

SOURCES

USGA Mid-Am fact sheet: https://filecache.mediaroom.com/mr5mr_usga2/190647/download/2025%20Mid-Am%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf

GOLF.com on reinstatement: https://golf.com/instruction/rules/how-pro-golfers-regain-amateur-status/

Golf Channel on the USGA pause: https://www.golfchannel.com/ncaa/news/usga-temporarily-pauses-review-of-amateur-status-reinstatement-guidelines

NBC Sports on the 2025 quarterfinals: https://www.nbcsports.com/golf/news/u-s-mid-amateur-quarters-filled-with-reinstated-ams-including-kft-vet-who-just-regained-status

SI, the other side: https://www.si.com/golf/us-mid-amateur-does-not-have-professional-problem

Most golfers work on the wrong thing. They stretch when the problem is fear. They lift when the problem is transfer. They take a lesson when the problem is speed.

Mike Carroll trains PGA Tour players through Fit For Golf, and he gave four at-home checks that tell you which one is actually holding you back. Then he laid out the exact 20 minute, three days a week template for a guy with a job, kids, and no gym.

FREE: The 15 Minute Test (one page, four checks, your one thing this month)

https://playready.golf/20-yards

Play Ready Golf app, 7 days free. Code PRGPOD saves $20 a year for life.

https://playready.golf

Mike Carroll, Fit For Golf

https://fitforgolf.blog

Instagram and X: @fit_for_golf

CHAPTERS

0:00 Mobility problem or technique problem? The three swing test

2:29 Four ways to find your real limiter

3:41 The 2 to 3 year strength rule

6:30 Technique vs skill: judge your best shots, not your average

7:38 The 15 minute test (free, first link)

8:11 The busy golfer: gym time or range time?

9:11 The calendar rule: tournament inside 3 months, skip the gym

14:07 Structure your year: winter builds capacity, spring transfers it

17:00 Strength benchmarks by age: pull up, push ups, jumps, split squats

26:34 Training 50,000 golfers from one app

27:46 Speed training: where a normal golfer starts

31:27 Your range speed vs your course speed

32:41 Transfer problem or capacity problem

35:22 When overload and underload tools earn their place

38:08 Four months out vs four weeks out

39:29 When speed stops being the lever

44:50 Play Ready Golf app

45:41 Isaak had 130 mph in college. It did not help.

49:40 The 20 minute template: Mon, Wed, Fri

52:20 Why power leaves first and almost nobody trains it

57:23 Speed work at the end of practice, not a separate session

59:48 Wrap up

Every number in this episode comes from Mike on the recording. Strokes gained references are from Mark Broadie, Every Shot Counts.

#golf #golffitness #golfpractice

FREE SIMPLE STAT TRACKER: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker

PLAY READY GOLF APP

Enter your round, the app does the strokes gained math and tells you what to practice. 7 day free trial. Code PRGPOD for $20 off the year.

https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Fairways hit is the golf stat every app shows you first, and it barely separates a scratch golfer from a 20 handicap. In this episode Isaak and Hayden go through the four golf stats on every scorecard app (fairways hit, greens in regulation, up and down percentage, putts per round), show what each one hides, and swap each one for a number you can track with a pencil that actually predicts your score.

WHAT YOU WILL HEAR

Why a scratch golfer hits only about 4% more fairways than a 20 handicap (Shot Scope)

The stat that actually separates handicaps off the tee: 12% vs 45% of drives in penalty or recovery (Arccos, 2025 driving report)

What the rough, trees, and a fairway bunker really cost you

Bryson at Winged Foot: 23 of 56 fairways and a U.S. Open trophy

Broadie's breakdown of where the scoring gap comes from: approach 40%, tee 28%, short game 17%, putting 15%

Why greens in regulation cannot tell 6 feet from 60

Why up and down percentage grades your chip on your putt

Hayden's 65 with 35 putts, and why putts per round rewards bad golf

The two putts that separate handicaps: lags from 30 feet and makes inside 8

Strokes gained vs simple stats: which one you should keep

Chapters:

0:00 Fairways hit barely separates golfers

1:10 Scratch vs 20 handicap: a 13 point stat

1:45 The disaster stat: 12% vs 45% of drives

3:08 What the rough, trees, and bunkers actually cost

4:54 Distance is worth more than accuracy

5:23 Stat 1: Tee shots in play

6:41 Bryson at Winged Foot: 23 of 56 fairways

7:31 Should a 56 year old chase distance?

8:41 Where the scoring gap really comes from

10:00 Why greens in regulation lies

12:50 Hayden's fringe confession

15:11 Short game is 17% of the gap

16:23 Up and down blends two shots

18:43 Stat 3: 11 feet vs 20 feet after a chip

19:33 Hayden pushes back on the 17%

21:31 Track five rounds and be honest

22:21 Why you should not copy how mid ams practice

25:57 You cannot know your tendencies without tracking them

26:56 The dumbest stat: putts per round

27:58 Hayden shot 65 with 35 putts

29:49 The two putts that separate handicaps

30:53 Strokes gained vs simple stats

31:05 Recap: the four simple stats

34:55 Bobby Rippey and 1,000 subscribers

36:57 Next: the driver episode

Get the free cheat sheet: ⁠https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam⁠

Want a practice plan built for your game and your schedule? Try Play Ready Golf free for 7 days. Code PRGPOD takes $20 off every year: ⁠⁠https://playready.golf/the-app⁠⁠

Follow Austin: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/_alangdale⁠⁠_

Austin Langdale's job is deciding which college golfers get equipment deals. He scouts for Srixon/Cleveland Golf, which means he watches perfect golf swings every single week. Most of those players never make it. In this episode he explains what actually separates scorers from range heroes, and how he used it to win the 2026 South Carolina Amateur while playing twice a month with 2 kids and a full time job. 9 years after an MS diagnosis ended his shot at pro golf.

You'll learn:

Why players with 190 ball speed still shoot 76

The tell scouts look for when everyone on the range looks perfect

How to win a state am on 40 minutes of practice a week

What to buy with $1,000 and 2 hours a week, and what to skip

Why most golfers carry 14 clubs but only need 8 or 9

The 1 club drill that builds feel faster than new gear

Chapters

00:00 A state champion's practice month

01:29 Closing out Quixote with the lead

03:31 Watching good golf instead of practicing

04:28 What a Srixon rep actually does

06:29 Who gets signed and who gets passed

08:34 What a 15 handicap can steal

10:07 The lowest hanging fruit

11:28 The 16 Golfers cheat sheet

11:55 NIL and the new college golf

14:58 Everyone looks the part on the range

16:09 Feel is a lost art

17:10 The Play Ready Golf app

17:58 Beating NeSmith and Champ

20:36 The injuries start at Clemson

25:02 Turning pro and the MS diagnosis

26:49 What MS took and what it gave

29:50 What the dream means now

31:39 A trophy and a 4 year old

33:32 What he wants his boys to learn

37:08 2 hours and 1,000 dollars

41:17 Merion and the U.S. Amateur

45:45 Clemson football check in

48:31 The fall schedule

50:58 Where to find Austin

Try the app free for 7 days. Code PRGPOD gets you 20 dollars off the annual plan for life: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Free stats guide: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats

Coaches. PRG Teams is built for high school and college programs at about half what our competitors charge. First month free, cancel anytime : https://playready.golf/teams

Two weeks ago we quoted a stat saying driver and 3 wood hit almost the same percentage of fairways, and the comments came apart. One commenter was right, and we went and checked. The stat has a hole in it, and nobody in golf has fixed it. Not Arccos. Not Shot Scope. Not Lou Stagner or Mark Broadie.

In this one: how far you actually hit driver, the one simulation that gets around the broken stat, the physics of why a 3 wood mishit curves less, exactly how many golfers should be hitting 3 wood off the tee, and 3 rules for the tee box that cost nothing.

Isaak has been in and around club fitting since 2017. Hayden plays professionally.

CHAPTERS 00:00 How many times did you actually pull driver

01:00 The comment that started this episode

01:50 The Arccos driving distance report

02:12 The amateur distance boom that never happened

03:33 What you hit it by handicap and by age

04:00 Everybody is 10 to 20 yards off

04:40 Where the strokes actually go

04:57 12% versus 45.1%

05:37 What counts as a big miss

06:23 Your miss is the same. Your aim is not.

06:59 The free stats guide

07:40 The stat we quoted has a hole in it

09:06 Nobody in golf has ever fixed it

10:35 The one study that gets around the problem

11:22 The shortest club won

12:02 The safety club is not safe, it is just shorter

12:44 Is a driver harder to square than a 3 wood

14:06 Gear effect, bulge and roll

15:31 What the robot test showed on toe hits

16:19 Why your own tendencies beat any stat we quote

17:02 How many golfers are straighter with 3 wood

18:20 The 1 in 10 number

18:36 If your 3 wood is as long as your driver

20:03 The 5% out of bounds rule

21:20 Nobody walked in asking me to fix their driver

22:00 Cutting down the driver shaft

23:07 The 2 reasons to shorten a shaft

25:26 Is driver marketing a scam

26:22 What a manufacturer told me about their own numbers

28:10 The fitting thing nobody thinks about

30:00 Tools, not jewels

33:20 Rule 1: driver is the default

34:00 Jason Day's pattern was 74 yards wide

34:40 Rule 2: aim off the trouble by half your pattern

35:50 Tee up on the same side as the trouble

36:10 Rule 3: the only 3 reasons to club down

37:19 The forced carry mistake I made for years

38:30 If you club down on 3 holes a round

38:49 How to think about lessons

41:36 Hayden argues against the whole episode

42:46 What actually fixes a 45% penalty rate

44:16 The guy who does not trust it right now

45:34 Findable and hittable

46:17 Tiger hit driver once at Hoylake

47:37 You do not have a driver problem

SOURCES NAMED IN THIS EPISODE Arccos annual driving distance report, 25,000 golfers and 6.5 million tee shots Lou Stagner, analysis of the Arccos database Shot Scope, driver versus 3 wood fairway data Golf Digest and Golf Laboratories robot testing Mark Broadie, strokes gained Scott Fawcett, DECADE

Secrets of the elite Mid-AM: ⁠https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam⁠

Practice smarter with the Play Ready Golf app. 7 days free, code ISAAK takes $20 off the year: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Follow Payne: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/paynerr/⁠

He plays 3 to 4 rounds before a tournament and hits balls maybe twice a week. He has a day job in logistics and just won his 3rd straight Tennessee State Amateur, something only 2 other golfers have done in 100 plus years.

Payne Denman has played 5 U.S. Amateurs, coached college golf at MTSU, Tennessee, and South Florida, and played pro golf on PGA Tour Latinoamerica before walking away. In this episode he breaks down exactly how he practices now: the 60 minute range hour he splits into 3 blocks, why he stopped hitting drivers and got better, the mirror work he does at home, and how he talks to himself like a coach talks to a player.

Timestamps

0:00 What he knows that college golfers don't

0:43 How many hours he actually practices

1:04 Mirror work, slow reps, and the 90 minute cap

2:10 Week 2: money games instead of range balls

2:33 The 45 minute session: where all the time goes

3:14 Why he quit hitting drivers (and got better)

4:41 Where college players waste unlimited hours

6:33 A lack of intent repeats what's easiest

7:10 How a coach fixes wasted practice

9:22 Talking to yourself like a coach

10:59 No coach? Write it down, 1 goal, max time

12:53 Separate mechanics from target practice

13:54 The 60 minute range hour: 3 blocks of 20

15:31 Why range games die on the course

16:22 Serial ball beating and why failure is the point

17:44 Playing scared: fear and embarrassment off the tee

19:14 Merion: the hardest course he's ever played

21:39 How he preps for championship setups

23:45 Adjusting to new grass, climates, and fog

26:45 The day job advantage

27:45 Down with 5 to play: birdies on 4 of the last 5

30:52 Fighting off the three-peat thoughts

32:22 What pro golf taught him about failure

33:35 The day he knew pro golf was over

36:32 What he tells players who want to turn pro

38:51 Reinstatement: the 4 year wait

41:31 PGA Tour Latinoamerica and the $4,000 career

44:32 What recreational golfers get wrong

46:45 What's next for Payne

Try the app free for 7 days. Code PRGPOD gets you 20 dollars off the annual plan for life : https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Free stats guide. Every benchmark from 3 feet to 300 yards, 20 handicap through tour pro : https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats

Free 59 minute practice plan: https://onelink.to/59minplan

Coaches. PRG Teams is built for high school and college programs at about half what our competitors charge. First month free : https://playready.golf/teams

CHAPTERS

00:00 How many of your 14 clubs did you actually hit

01:19 The hybrid Isaak loved and had to take out

02:15 The Arccos study nobody talks about

03:37 This happens at every handicap level

04:04 The 5 most abandoned clubs in golf

05:18 Why the 3 wood is a security blanket

06:30 You carry it so you are not the guy without one

08:18 The free stats guide

09:28 You did not pick 14 clubs, you inherited a slot

10:47 The 1935 US Open and the guy with 32 clubs

12:00 Lawson Little and his 7 wedges

13:03 Why the USGA actually made the rule

14:20 The man who invented 14 said 14 was too many

16:56 Francis Ouimet won a US Open with 7 clubs

17:27 A limit is not a quota

18:20 Your 7 iron has the loft of a 1990s 5 iron

19:21 Isaak on 8 years in club fitting

20:24 The gap wedge exists to patch a hole

20:57 The case for owning more than 14 clubs

22:22 Hayden's qualifier, 14 holes, zero drivers

25:20 Why leaving a gap on purpose works

26:22 Rule 1: every club needs a job you can say out loud

28:01 Rule 2: two clubs cannot share a job

29:30 Rule 3: the receipt rule

30:46 Hybrid versus long iron, the Shot Scope numbers

31:58 Why long irons fail, and it is not your swing

33:05 What being the outlier actually costs you

36:00 Rule 4: replace it, do not just remove it

37:03 Driver versus 3 wood

39:09 Humility with a receipt

39:39 Arguing against our own episode

40:49 The USGA study on what golfers do not know

42:37 Where this data comes from and its limits

42:50 What to take with you

44:59 Hayden on discipline and the Ohio Open

SOURCES NAMED IN THIS EPISODE

Lou Stagner, analysis of the Arccos database, March 2023

Shot Scope, long iron versus hybrid greens in regulation

Arccos, driver versus 3 wood accuracy and distance

USGA TrackMan study, December 2023, 627 recreational golfers

Robert Harris, Sixty Years of Golf, 1953

Rand Jerris, USGA, on the origin of the 14 club rule

World Golf Hall of Fame on Lawson Little

Golf Digest and Ralph Maltby on iron loft changes

Try Play Ready Golf free for 7 days. Code PRGPOD takes $20 off every year, forever: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Secrets of the mid-am: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam

Get a custom piece from Andrew: andrew@sanstudio.com

Andrew Chapman shot 90 in the first round of a U.S. Am qualifier and wondered if the USGA would send him a letter. 4 years later he won the Michigan Amateur as the 32 seed, and today he builds custom furniture, raises 2 boys, and still chases USGA qualifiers. We get into the line between supporting a kid and pushing one, the multi-sport locker room at Michigan, the rebuild that started with grip and stance, the wedge ladder that carries his whole bag, AimPoint with a carpenter's level, and what a craftsman knows about the difference between good and right.

Timestamps

0:00 Harder to watch than to compete

2:07 The temptation a champion dad resists

3:27 Family golf: 9 holes, 2 hours, 2 boys

5:33 Quick to the ball, then take your time

6:52 The line between helping and pushing

7:45 Playing golf swing instead of golf

9:43 What his parents got right

11:04 Too serious, and the try less lesson

13:19 The 12-second pre-shot fix

15:17 The golf bug at 13

17:49 Every Michigan player was multi-sport

22:29 Rock bottom: the 2009 qualifier

25:42 The 32 seed run, and where belief comes from

28:50 His practice: the 40 to 110 wedge ladder

30:13 AimPoint with a carpenter's level

32:12 The 9 shots drill

34:18 Good vs. right: lessons from the shop

37:40 Build this first: the beginner slab table

39:19 The 20 foot table at a golf course

40:36 What he wants his boys to take at 18

42:59 The reinstatement debate

47:24 Bring back the 36-hole qualifier

47:47 Staying with Scottie Scheffler at the U.S. Am 4

9:05 Where to find Andrew, and what's next

Free stats guide: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats

Get tour level strokes gained data in 30 seconds a hole with Play Ready Golf. Free 7 day trial: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Code PRGPOD gets you $20 off every year for life.

Tour pros make about half their putts from 8 feet. From 100 yards in the fairway they hit it inside 3 feet 1 time in 25. The standard you grade your golf against does not exist. Not for you. Not for them.

This week we tear up the fake report card most golfers carry in their heads. Where it came from (the broadcast, the Ben Hogan legend, and your own inflated numbers), what breaking 90 actually looks like for a 15 handicap, what a real 68 and a real 63 look like in strokes gained, and a 4 rule grading system that costs nothing and starts working your next round.

Sources named in this episode: Mark Broadie (Columbia, PGA Tour ShotLink), Shot Scope, Arccos and Lou Stagner, Jon Sherman (Practical Golf), Adam Young, Bob Rotella, and the Ben Hogan story as told by Dan Jenkins.

Chapters

0:00 The number that ends the argument

1:35 Mad about a birdie

3:11 Tour averages, 3 feet to 300 yards

6:52 Tiger missed 4 putts in 4 years

10:01 Where the fake report card came from

11:37 Hogan graded himself on 3 shots

15:51 The 24 yards you don't have

17:57 Your handicap is not your average

18:59 The break 90 data dump

21:35 Playing US Open qualifying with tour pros

28:53 A 68 and a 63 in strokes gained

33:04 Shooting a gajillion and smiling

39:49 The new report card

42:27 Grade putts by the second putt

45:03 Steal Hogan's scorecard

48:39 Ambition vs unrealistic expectations

50:48 Why golfers actually quit

51:20 Hayden is coming to Instagram

57:07 Give the scorecard back

Try Play Ready Golf free for 7 days. Code PRGPOD takes $20 off every year: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

The Mid-Am Insights PDF. Every lesson from every mid-am we have interviewed, in one download: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/secretsofthemidam

Support the new home of the Ole Miss Patterson School of Accountancy: https://accountancy.olemiss.edu/new-building/

Brett's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bpatterson03/

Brett Patterson is the 5th ranked mid-am in America. He teaches 300 accounting students at Ole Miss, has 2 girls at home, and touches a club 3 or 4 times a week at best. In college he hit 300 balls a day and got worse. Then he left tournament golf for 5 years, came back, and started winning everything. We get into the 4 weeks off before he opened 7 under, the wedge and putter plan that replaced the bucket, the mental spiral that almost ended his golf, and the piece of advice he says actively hurts amateurs.

Timestamps

0:00 The #5 mid-am barely touches a club

0:53 4 weeks off, then 7 under in round 1

2:18 A Tuesday with 300 students and 2 kids

3:52 College: 300 balls a day, sun up to dark

7:19 Less practice, better golf. The flip.

8:39 5 years away and the 2022 U.S. Amateur

14:22 What he'd tell every college golfer

16:54 His practice now: wedges and lag putts

19:59 An accountant's take on tracking stats

22:35 Bring back Golfstat

26:09 The biggest mistakes amateurs make

28:58 Never the most talented. What separates him.

31:08 What scratch golfers miss about scoring

34:16 Championship golf vs weekend golf

35:42 The advice that actively hurts amateurs

37:05 Pressure putts and choosing confidence

38:36 How to stay sharp after time off

40:43 The reinstatement debate

50:49 What he wants his daughters to know

53:48 A shoutout to the mid-am wives

54:02 Prepping for the U.S. Mid-Am at Sand Valley

56:26 Support the new Ole Miss accountancy building

Want 1 science based practice fix a day for the next 30 days? That is the second link: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/30hacksin30

The Play Ready Golf app turns 30 seconds a hole into tour level strokes gained data and a practice plan built around your time and facilities: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Code PRGPOD gets you $20 off every year for life: https://apps.apple.com/redeem?ctx=offercodes&id=6752723937&code=PRGPOD

Grab the free Greenside Menu, the 1 page decision card we walk through in this episode. Print it or save it to your phone: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/menu

Your short game problem is not your hands. It is the order you pick shots in. In this episode of the Play Ready Golf Podcast (Ep. 31) we use Shot Scope and Arccos data to show why golfers at every handicap level fail from 50 yards, why the flop shot became everyone's default, and the 4 question menu that fixes it without a single lesson.

Timestamps:

0:00 Nobody has hands

1:42 The data: up and down by handicap

2:56 The app in 30 seconds

3:22 The highlight reel raised you

5:57 Extreme sells: the wedge industry

7:00 Jason Day: one motion, many clubs

8:53 Option 1: the putter

10:17 One email a day for 30 days

10:33 Option 2: the low chip

11:11 Option 3: the pitch

12:34 Option 4: the flop

13:40 The cost of ignoring the menu

14:17 Judge every shot by its miss

15:27 What Hayden sees caddying

19:19 Rule 1: can I putt it?

20:18 Rule 2: lowest loft that clears the trouble

21:59 Rule 3: pitch only when something is in the way

22:45 Rule 4: the flop is the fire escape

23:37 The menu in order

25:20 What about bad lies?

26:33 2 honest notes about the data

27:29 The takeaway

Missed the double bogey episode we reference? Watch it here: https://youtu.be/D1ZK1E_06Xs

Data in this episode comes from Shot Scope, Arccos data via Lou Stagner, PGA Tour scrambling stats, and Edoardo Molinari via Golf Digest.

Download Play Ready Golf and get tour level strokes gained data in 30 seconds a hole, plus a practice plan built around your time and your facilities: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Use code PRGPOD for $20 off every year, for life

Get 1 science-based practice hack in your inbox every day for 30 days: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/30hacksin30

Grab the free 59 Minute Practice Guide, built on strokes gained data and motor learning research: https://onelink.to/59minplan

Follow Scott: https://www.instagram.com/cachill21

Scott Cahill had full status on PGA Tour Latinoamerica. He gave it back, took a full-time job, and barely touched a club for 5 years. Then he fell back in love with the game and won the Arizona Mid-Amateur at Grayhawk, on a course where the field made 1,158 bogeys in 3 days. He did it with a newborn at home and a practice routine he calls a cram session. This episode is the blueprint for playing your best golf with the least time you've ever had.

Timestamps:

0:00 Walking away from the Tour

2:17 The pro golf grind nobody sees

5:37 Five years without touching a club

8:11 When golf stopped feeling like work

11:35 What he'd change about his pro practice

14:02 Golf with a newborn and a full-time job

18:24 Inside his boring practice routine

21:30 The stat that surprised him

25:21 Winning the Arizona Mid-Am at Grayhawk

32:00 The 59 at Tobacco Road

35:55 Signing with the Grass League

38:04 The reinstated pro debate

48:42 What winning actually gets you

51:17 Lessons for his son

Sick of 1 hole wrecking your whole round? Grab the free Disaster Card. It has the 4 rules on the front and a 3 round leak tracker on the back that shows you exactly where your strokes are going: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/disaster

Once you know your leak, the Play Ready Golf app builds every practice session around it:https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Podcast listeners get an extended free trial plus a discount with code PRGPOD:https://apps.apple.com/redeem?ctx=offercodes&id=6752723937&code=PRGPOD

Your golf handicap is not decided by your swing. It is decided by 3 or 4 blow-up holes a round. In this episode of the Play Ready Golf Podcast (Ep. 29) we use Shot Scope and Arccos data to prove that double bogeys, not birdies, separate every handicap level. Then we walk through the 5 leaks that cause blow-up holes and the 4 rules that stop them. None of it requires practice time.

Timestamps:0:00 The number that breaks your brain1:14 Hayden's triple at US Am qualifying4:45 The data: doubles by handicap5:58 The free Disaster Card6:18 Why golfers blame the swing10:54 Birdies happen by accident12:30 The 5 leaks behind every blow-up hole13:00 Leak 1: tee shots into trouble14:20 Leak 2: the hero recovery15:43 Leak 3: the short-side miss17:47 Leak 4: the double chip19:01 Leak 5: three-putts21:15 Hayden's worst blow-up holes27:04 The Disaster Card: 4 rules27:59 Rule 1: count your doubles (the Train Game)29:52 Rule 2: the one-job shot30:56 Rule 3: get long putts inside 3 feet32:39 Rule 4: short-sided means middle of the green34:57 Is this just playing scared?37:26 2 honest notes about the data38:14 The takeaway40:15 What to watch next

Data in this episode comes from the Shot Scope Annual Report (74M+ shots), Arccos data via Lou Stagner, Mark Broadie's Every Shot Counts, and Edoardo Molinari via Golf Digest.

Play Ready Golf app: ⁠https://onelink.to/93ggkv⁠

Use code PRGPOD for 20 dollars off every year, for life.

One science based hack a day for 30 days: ⁠https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/30hacksin30⁠

Free 59 minute practice guide: ⁠https://onelink.to/59minplan⁠

FIND NATE

Mountain Creative Construction, licensed in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and Teton Valley, Idaho

Nate on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/ndizzle4shizzle/⁠

Nate Smith made it to pro golf, then walked away at 30 because he did not like who the game was turning him into. He got an MBA, moved to Idaho, built a construction business, and barely touched a club for eight years. Then he came back as an amateur and started winning, beating players half his age who practice every day.

If you love golf but cannot give it your whole life, this one is for you. Nate plays a few weeks a year and still competes at the top of the amateur game. He breaks down how he practices with intent, why not being obsessed with results is his biggest edge, and what he would tell anyone trying to get better with limited time.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Walking away from a Tour card at 30

01:48 What eight years away taught him

04:23 The hardest lesson, he was not always first

05:53 What pulled him back in 2022

07:36 Coming back after eight years off

09:56 Winning right away, and why it did not surprise him

10:41 Competing while running a construction business

13:26 How much you should actually practice

15:04 Practice with intent, hit 20 balls and leave

18:04 Taking your practice to the course

20:12 North and South week, identity over outcome

22:10 Playing at elevation versus sea level

24:36 Grass League and the Hollywood Hitters

28:06 The truth about amateur reinstatement

33:48 What he would tell his 25 year old self

35:14 What is next on his schedule

38:03 Where to find Nate

7-Day App Trial:⁠ https://onelink.to/93ggkv⁠

59-Minute Practice Plan: ⁠https://onelink.to/59minplan⁠

30-Hacks for Busy Golfers: ⁠https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/30hacksin30⁠

Chapters:

0:00 A $12 bucket vs a $40 round

1:48 Why leaving the range happy is a bad sign

2:59 What practice costs, and what actually lowers scores

4:20 Quality over quantity: making 30 minutes count

5:58 Where the "beat balls" myth came from

8:48 The 1992 study: why your range swing doesn't show up

9:54 Bubba Watson barely touched the range

13:39 Hayden's confession: practicing just to say he did

14:58 How to actually practice: fewer balls, real pressure

20:02 Tournament golf exposes your tendencies

24:45 Why "just hit more balls" fails

27:38 Rule 1: Play more, and play cheaper

29:45 Rule 2: Give the range rules

32:15 Rule 3: Practice on the course for free

34:27 Rule 4: Aim where you leak

35:49 Tendencies vs dispersion

43:32 When the range is actually the right call

46:16 Good intentions vs being intentional

Try Play Ready Golf free for 7 days and use code PRGPOD for 20 off your annual plan for life: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Free 59 minute practice plan: https://onelink.to/59minplan

Virgil Abloh Foundation: https://thevirgilablohfoundation.com/donate/

Broomsedge: https://www.broomsedgegolf.com/

Most golfers think the path to lower scores is more reps. Hit more balls, grind more hours, fix the swing. Cody Sundberg is proof of the opposite. He is a plus 4.5 mid-amateur playing the best golf of his life right now, and he got there by practicing less, not more.

Cody is also the guy who bet on Broomsedge, the brand new South Carolina course that just landed at number 94 on Golfweek's list of the best modern designs in the country. He went from grinding mini tours, to commercial real estate, to writing the first big check for a course that was being shaped by a guy with 82 dollars left in the bank.

In this episode, Isaak and Hayden sit down with Cody to talk about why hitting more balls is quietly making you worse, how progressive overload applies to your golf game, what it actually took to build a nationally ranked course from dirt, and why great golf should not require two planes and a four hour drive.

We cover: Why a plus 4.5 plays his best golf by practicing less The tour pro range habit that changed how Cody practices How progressive overload applies to golf, and why we never apply it Betting on a course being built by a guy with 82 dollars left The welcoming private club idea and sharing great golf with everyone What it really takes to build a nationally ranked course from scratch

Timestamps

0:00 The most mispronounced course in golf

1:09 How a real estate guy from Chicago got involved

2:00 The club supply problem that sparked the idea

3:26 Finding the land with Koprowski and Franz

4:31 Why Cody thought modern courses got too easy

6:14 Borrowing the UK model and letting outsiders play

7:05 Funded by spring, playing it by that October

7:40 Betting on a course built with 82 dollars left

9:02 Why he first wanted Broomsedge to be public

10:01 Learning to run five businesses at once

11:16 Bringing in Mike Keiser Jr. and Baker Thompson

12:29 The professional golf years

14:37 Life on the Hooters tour with future major winners

17:52 What he tells the golfer who wonders how good he could be

20:26 Why tournament golf is a completely different game

21:43 The welcoming private club idea

23:56 The design philosophy behind the course

26:10 Back-to-back par 3s and building on 180 acres

27:25 The postage stamp 11th that almost did not exist

29:48 What the Carolinas Mid-Am taught them

32:33 Why he plays his best golf practicing less

34:15 The tour pro range habit that changed everything

36:41 Why progressive overload applies to golf

38:34 The lessons his dad passed down

40:42 What is next on his calendar

42:51 Where to find Broomsedge

The App (use code PRGPOD): https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Nate's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nate_gahman/

Identify over outcome: https://www.id-outcome.com/

Last year an insurance agent with 2 kids walked into the Georgia Open and beat a field of professionals by 2 shots. He barely practices, and when he does, he never grinds for more than an hour.

In this episode Nate breaks down how he competes at the top of the amateur game on almost no practice time. Play more than you practice. One good 4 iron and the work is done. 90 percent of his putting is 4 and 5 footers. And he decides how he is going to react before he ever hits the putt.

If this makes you rethink how you spend your range time, that is exactly what the Play Ready Golf app is built for. It takes the time you actually have, the facilities you can get to, and your skill level, then builds a practice plan that gets harder as you get better. Use code PRGPOD on the link below for a free 7 day trial and 20 dollars off your annual plan for life.

The App: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Chapters

0:00 Beating the pros with a full time job

1:11 Play more than you practice

2:56 The $0 pro career that made him quit

6:34 How his wife pulled him back in

8:13 Decide how you will react before you putt

9:37 What 90 minutes of practice looks like

11:01 Why one good 4 iron is enough

12:49 Winning the Georgia Open in the rain

15:40 Play your game, not the optimal one

16:23 Stop copying YouTube golf

17:22 The 50 footer at the Palmetto Amateur

19:12 An insurance agent against the world's best

22:42 His wife on the bag

23:43 Removing joy from your results

26:40 Why treating practice like a job burns you out

27:46 What he hopes his kids learn from golf

Use code PRGPOD for $20 off your first year. Link below for a free 7-day trial.

https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Your driver pattern is almost the same width as Scottie Scheffler's. About 5 yards apart.

You don't have a swing problem. You have an aim problem.

In this episode we break down the four things amateurs do off the tee that quietly cost them 4 to 7 strokes a round. None of them are about your swing. All of them are about how you're aiming a shotgun like it's a rifle.

We cover:

What a tour pro's actual driver dispersion looks like, and why yours might be closer than you think

The 4 wrong moves: aiming at the middle, pulling 3-wood for safety, standing on the wrong side of the tee box, and trying to work it both ways

The Scott Fawcett rule for when to hit driver, and when not to

Why penalty strokes, not crooked drives, are what's actually blowing up your scorecard

Hayden's 7-over-par confession from one hole at a tournament last year

The four things you should do on your next round

Sources cited in this episode:

Mark Broadie, Every Shot Counts (PGA Tour data from top 40 pros, 2004 to 2012)

Lou Stagner / Arccos (1B+ shots tracked, dispersion data and penalty stroke research)

Scott Fawcett, DECADE system (course management principles and the 70-yard rule)

PGA Tour stats (Scheffler's 2025 strokes gained off the tee, right rough tendency, driving distance)

Want to actually see your own dispersion broken down? Stop guessing what your shot pattern looks like and start measuring it. Play Ready Golf builds a custom practice plan based on where you're actually losing strokes.

0:00 You're Not A Bad Driver. You're A Bad Aimer.

0:50 The Stat That Reframes Everything About Scheffler

3:00 How Wide Is Your Driver Pattern, Really?

8:48 You Are 5 Yards From The Best Player On Earth

11:13 Wrong Move 1: Aiming At The Middle Of The Fairway

13:00 Wrong Move 2: Pulling 3-Wood For Safety

16:55 Wrong Move 3: The Wrong Side Of The Tee Box

22:00 Wrong Move 4: Trying To Work It Both Ways

30:55 The Fawcett Rule: Hit Driver Almost Every Time

35:30 The Hole Hayden Was 7-Over On

39:25 Four Things For Your Next Round

42:00 What To Watch Next

House of Hope of The Pee Dee: https://hofh.org/

Play Ready Golf 7-Day Trial (use code "PRGPOD): ⁠https://onelink.to/93ggkv⁠

Most golfers grind for hours and never drop a shot. Jon Weiss does the opposite. He runs a 50-employee ministry, he is married with a full calendar, and he rarely practices more than an hour. Then he goes and wins one of the toughest mid-am events of the year in 35 mph wind.

In this episode Jon breaks down how he competes at a high level on almost no practice. Low expectations. Drive it in play. Putt it well. Zero double bogeys over his last six competitive rounds. A good attitude before he ever reaches the first tee.

Chapters

00:00 The lowest expectations in golf

01:43 The last time he practiced over an hour

03:50 What he works on, and what he ignores

05:33 Why mid-am golf runs on supportive wives

08:08 The switch that erased his double bogeys

10:30 Winning Jupiter in brutal wind

12:15 Coaching a JV team to 40 fewer shots

15:28 The coaches who built his short game

17:55 Make 3 footers before you chase 20 footers

20:44 The dumbest thing range golfers do

21:47 Get more from 34 balls than a full bucket

24:38 Inside House of Hope of the Pee Dee

30:13 Why he really plays golf now

32:41 Rock bottom to surrender

38:08 The national stage, Erin Hills and Philly Cricket

43:51 The qualifying mindset most golfers get wrong

45:33 How attitude beats most of the field

48:22 Course rankings and a 340 yard hole he hits 7 iron on

50:44 What is next, and slowing down

Try the Play Ready Golf app free for 7 days. Use code PRGPOD at checkout for $20 off your annual plan for life: https://onelink.to/93ggkv

Grab the free stat tracker and proximity benchmarks PDF mentioned in the episode: https://onelink.to/stats

Most amateurs spend 30 minutes on the practice green before every round. They hit 5 greens out of 18 and lose 40 yards of proximity from 150. You're not a bad putter. You're bad from 150.

Mark Broadie analyzed the top 40 PGA Tour pros from 2004 to 2012 and found putting is 15% of the gap between elite and average pros. Approach play is 40%. A scratch golfer beats a Tour pro on the greens in more than 30% of rounds. The data has been public for 12 years. In this episode Isaak and Hayden break down where your strokes actually leak, why Bobby Locke, Harvey Penick, and Dave Pelz built the putting myth, and what to practice instead.

📊 Data sources cited in this episode:

Mark Broadie, Every Shot Counts (Columbia University, top 40 PGA Tour pros 2004-2012)

Shot Scope (350M+ shots)

Arccos via Lou Stagner (1B+ shots)

Dave Pelz, Short Game Bible (2000)

Harvey Penick, Little Red Book (1992)

Chapters:

00:00 Why you're not actually a bad putter

00:53 The Broadie data nobody talks about

02:20 The Play Ready Golf app

02:42 Putts per round vs greens hit

04:57 The 150 yard truth (54 feet vs 122 feet)

09:00 How to practice when nothing feels like progress

15:00 The myth: Bobby Locke and "drive for show putt for dough"

20:56 The myth: Harvey Penick's Little Red Book

27:57 The myth: Dave Pelz and the 80% lie

29:26 Where putting actually matters (the steel-man)

32:33 How to raise your floor with approach play

40:00 Random practice and why blocked practice fails

44:42 "But I 3 putt all the time" (the data on lag putts)

48:19 What to take from this conversation

Connor Doyal is a 26 year old caddy at the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island. He almost never goes to the range. 3 weeks ago he won the Terra Cotta Invitational against a stacked junior field. Last week he Monday qualified into the PGA Tour's Myrtle Beach Classic and made the cut on the number after hitting his approach into 18 from 137 yards in a divot. This week he's at Desert Mountain playing the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball. In this one we get into the 14 for 12 playoff that put him in the U.S. Mid-Amateur at Kinloch, the quarterfinal against Evan Beck that gave him the confidence to compete with the best mid-amateurs in the country, the mental reframe that made the PGA Tour feel less nervy than an amateur event, why he never practices on the range, and the 30 minute practice protocol he'd give an average golfer. Follow Connor: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connordoyal/ Try Play Ready Golf (Use code PRG POD): https://onelink.to/93ggkv Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:34 Quitting Consulting in Atlanta 02:26 Why He Didn't Play College Golf 04:19 An Albatross on His First Day Caddying 06:12 The Practice He Actually Does 10:16 The Biggest Mistake Amateurs Make 12:08 The 14-for-12 Playoff at Kinloch 13:50 First USGA Match. Down Three Early. 17:25 Quarterfinal vs Evan Beck 19:58 Monday Qualifying for the PGA Tour 21:21 Making the Cut From a Divot 22:49 "I'm Just on Vacation." 25:56 Winning the Terra Cotta 30:46 He Never Goes to the Range 32:21 The 30 Minute Practice Protocol 34:11 Prepping for the Four-Ball

App: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6752723937 Most amateurs think they know how far they hit their irons. The Arccos data says they don't. The average 20 handicap thinks their 5 iron flies 187 yards. The actual median carry is 152. That 35 yard gap doesn't just cost one shot. It cascades. Short approach, harder chip, missed up and down, lag putt from 90 feet, three-putt 27% of the time. Two to three strokes per round, every single round, and it had nothing to do with your swing. This episode breaks down where the cascade actually starts, why "80% of strokes lost inside 100 yards" is the most repeated lie in golf, and the 15 minute gapping session that fixes most of it before your next round. ——— Free resources The 59 minute practice plan: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/59minuteplan The PRG benchmarks PDF: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats The simple stat tracker: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker ——— 00:00 The 35 yard lie in your bag 01:46 Hayden's college par-3 story 03:25 Why hitting past the pin feels worse 05:43 The cascade from one wrong club 06:32 Where amateurs actually miss from 150 08:45 Aim long until you actually go long 10:48 The 9, 7, 5 gapping drill 13:52 Why Pelz was wrong about the short game 15:30 Isaak's launch monitor rabbit hole 17:58 The middle 6 of 10 balls drill 21:04 Two rules that kill club selection ego 23:54 The Bryson 5 iron rant 25:50 The take two more clubs challenge 29:35 Why block practice does not transfer 30:38 What to actually do at the range 34:21 Resources and final word

Scott Turner owns the Minor League Golf Tour, runs over 100 events a year, raises a daughter, and somehow still wins elite mid-am tournaments against fields full of guys who hit it 310 yards.

He hits balls 4 to 5 times a year. His best tournament prep is 9 holes with his buddies for 20 bucks. In this conversation he explains exactly how he competes without practicing, why 90% of professional golfers lose money every year, what Eric Cole was like for a full decade before breaking through to the PGA Tour, and the course management mistake that every handicap level makes without realizing it.

We also get into his years as a "part-time hobby professional" working 28-hour weekends in a cart barn to fund Monday qualifiers, the college golf team that rejected him for 4 years straight, and what he tells young players who ask him whether they should keep grinding or hang it up.

If you're a working golfer trying to get better with limited time, this one's for you.

FOLLOW SCOTT + THE MINOR LEAGUE GOLF TOUR: Website: ⁠https://minorleaguegolf.com⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://instagram.com/minorleaguegolftour⁠

ALSO MENTIONED: Back of the Range Podcast (Ben) : https://www.instagram.com/thebackoftherange/

PLAY READY GOLF: Download the app: ⁠https://apps.apple.com/app/id6752723937⁠

CHAPTERS:

0:00 Introduction 0:27 How Scott stays sharp hitting balls 5 times a year 2:41 Beating 310-yard bombers with a 15-year-old hybrid 5:09 Why 9 holes beats 7 days at the range 7:54 The college team that rejected him for 4 years 13:44 Life as a "part-time hobby professional" 17:21 Turn pro or stay mid-am at 23? 20:50 How the Minor League Golf Tour started 24:18 90% of pro golfers lose money every year 27:45 What separates the 10% who make it 30:25 Eric Cole shot 65 every day for a decade 34:09 The $100 training division for working golfers 37:07 How good are mini tour players really? 41:26 The club selection mistake every golfer makes 43:28 Winning the Gasparilla at Palmacia 47:18 Legacy, fatherhood, and the Jumbotron story 50:21 Where to find Scott and the Minor League Golf Tour

You watched four days of the Masters and decided your putting is broken. It's not.

74 million shots say amateur golfers miss more than 60% of putts from 8 feet. Tour pros miss 3 out of 4 from 15 feet. A scratch golfer misses 2 out of every 3 from 10 feet. Your putting isn't the problem. Your expectations are. And those broken expectations are quietly making your putting worse round after round.

In this episode, Isaak and Hayden break down what the data actually says about putting performance at every handicap level, why watching the Masters creates a choking loop you didn't know you were in, and how to recalibrate what a "good putt" actually looks like. Plus the drills that build putting under real pressure, not practice-green pressure.

Get a handicap-specific benchmark card in the show notes. Figure out where you actually lose strokes and practice the right things with Play Ready Golf. Use code PRGPOD for $20 off your first year.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Cold Open: The Masters Made You Think You're a Bad Putter 00:56 Why Your Expectations Are the Real Problem 03:46 15%, 40%, 25%: The Putting Stats Nobody Shares 11:28 The Choking Loop That Starts on Your Couch 14:18 Hayden's Ohio Am Putting Meltdown 15:52 Green Reading and the Pre-Shot Routine 25:37 Realistic Make Rates by Distance (The New Scoreboard) 36:20 How to Practice Putting Without Wasting Time 42:15 You're Not a Bad Putter

RESOURCES

Play Ready Golf app: ⁠https://onelink.to/93ggkv⁠ Realistic Expectations by Handicap: ⁠https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats⁠

#golfpodcast #golfpractice #puttingtips #strokesgained #golfstats

Mike Smith is the founder of ForeCollegeGolf, a recruiting consultancy that has helped over 200 families in 40+ countries place junior golfers at college programs. He's a two-time Florida Foursomes champion, a 2024 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball semifinalist, and according to his Four-Ball partner Will Davenport, the most clutch golfer he's ever played with. He also has two boys under four and runs his business full time. In this conversation, Mike walks through what golf parents get wrong about recruiting, why he refuses to practice his weaknesses, the partnership and the wedge shot that nearly took him and Will to a USGA title, and the mental shift he made after becoming a dad that completely changed how he competes. For golfers who feel stuck between wanting to improve and not having time to grind, this is the reframe. Get a 7 days of free personalized practice plans: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/play-ready-golf/id6752723937?ppid=af3c9fac-74c5-46b7-9bea-e41648182e7d Follow Mike: instagram.com/forecollegegolf ForeCollegeGolf: forecollegegolf.com Chapters 00:00 Intro 00:16 Showing up to a USGA championship missing a shoe 02:18 What growing up at TPC Sawgrass actually does to a kid 05:28 Why he chose James Madison over bigger programs 09:54 Climbing the junior golf ladder without skipping rungs 11:46 Becoming team captain as a junior at JMU 14:47 Starting ForeCollegeGolf in 2014 16:13 The biggest thing parents get wrong about college golf recruiting 17:49 What to tell the dad whose 13-year-old just broke 80 22:53 Why his real passion is not college recruiting 27:10 Meeting Will Davenport at the Womet Invitational 29:21 The broomstick putter that changed Will's game 31:43 The Lago Mar eagle (and the rule that got changed the next year) 34:22 The Sam Bradford putt at Plainfield 37:53 Why he refuses to practice his weaknesses 40:28 Faith, family, and the mental shift after becoming a dad 42:19 What he'll teach Lucas and Graham about competing 44:25 Scotty Scheffler, cross-training, and praising effort over outcome 48:04 The holy grail: course management and outcome detachment 49:12 Wrap #golf #collegegolf #midamateur #golfpractice #usga

The driving range business model hasn't meaningfully changed since the first one opened in Pinehurst in 1913. Lights, mats, and automatic ball dispensers. That's it.

But the science of how people learn motor skills has changed dramatically. And none of it says "hit the same club to the same target until it feels good."

In this episode, we break down exactly how to structure your limited practice time using strokes gained data, random practice principles, and pressure finishes. Three complete sessions: 15 minutes at home, 30 minutes at the range, and a full 59 minute plan that covers every part of your game.

Hayden, a professional golfer who practices 3.5 to 4 hours a day, has a specific target on every single shot. If the guy with the most time is the most intentional, that should tell you something about how you're spending your 30 minutes.

Download the free practice plan PDF: ⁠playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/59minuteplan⁠ Try the Play Ready Golf app: ⁠https://apps.apple.com/app/id6752723937⁠

⁠https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.playreadygolf.app⁠

00:00 Why "feel" is lying to you 02:00 Practicing to say you practiced 03:00 Bob Rotella's 60/40 rule 03:59 Strokes gained breakdown: where your shots actually come from 04:44 The 5 rules of effective practice 06:12 "If you aim anywhere, you'll hit it everywhere" 06:33 Full pre-shot routine on every shot 07:37 Track something. Write it down. 08:12 End every session with pressure 08:30 15 minute home putting session 11:49 30 minute range session 14:09 Stop training for penalties 17:14 Wedge distance control 18:43 The 59 minute practice plan 22:13 Why iron play is where you improve the most 23:17 Tee ball: keep your shoes on 25:05 Putting and chipping: don't fluff the ball 27:27 Full routine or no routine. Pick one. 28:06 Why people don't practice like this 29:09 The range hasn't changed since 1913 30:37 Practice for the golf course, not your swing

He works 60+ hours a week at Boston Consulting Group. He's ranked #16 among mid-amateur golfers in the entire country. Will Davenport is proof that structured, intentional practice beats volume every time. In this episode, Will walks through exactly how he structures his limited practice time into three buckets, why he switched to a broomstick putter (and the one missed putt that forced the decision), the story of how he went from losing his match at the U.S. Mid-Amateur to caddying at the Masters, and why he thinks every golfer needs to play faster. Will is a member at Pine Tree Golf Club, a Yale grad with a molecular biology degree, a Wharton MBA, and one of the most decorated mid-amateur competitors in the country. His competitive resume includes a U.S. Amateur Four-Ball semifinal, a U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinal, and the 2024 FSGA Player of the Year award. Follow Will @willywonka93: https://www.instagram.com/willywonka93/ Will’s Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wcd-fl/ If you want to practice smarter with the time you actually have, Play Ready Golf builds you a personalized practice plan based on your limited time. Download the app and start your 7 day free trial IOS: https://apps.apple.com/app/play-ready-golf/id6752723937 Google Play (US Only): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.playreadygolf.app

 CHAPTERS: 0:00 Cold Open 0:55 How Will balances BCG and elite golf 2:05 The moment he knew pro golf wasn't the path 4:54 Does a molecular biology degree help your golf game? 7:56 A typical practice week (3 buckets) 11:59 What gets cut first on busy weeks 13:47 The biggest practice mistake he sees at every club 18:20 Why he switched to a broomstick putter 23:14 The 2019 U.S. Mid-Am and the Lukas Michel story 29:08 What it's like to caddy at the Masters 33:55 Why he's elite in team golf 36:08 Playing fast vs. playing rushed 41:07 The hardest mid-am golf course he's played 43:45 Advice to his younger self 46:46 What's next on his schedule

Most golfers walk into their club championship, member-guest, or first tournament expecting to play their normal game. The data says you should expect to play worse. Not because you choke. Because the conditions are fundamentally different in ways nobody warns you about.

In this episode, we break down exactly how to prepare for tournament golf when you have a 9-to-5. From the week before to the warm-up to the mental traps that silently eat your score mid-round. Hayden just came off a professional tournament where he shot 9 over through two rounds and then 8 under the final two. What changed? Nothing about his swing.

If you're playing a tournament this season, listen to this before you tee it up.

The Play Ready Golf app is live. Use code PRGPOD for $44/year if you sign up by April 12 (founding member pricing ends after the Masters) Apple: https://apps.apple.com/app/play-ready-golf/id6752723937 Android(US Only): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.playreadygolf.app

Download the free resources we reference: Benchmark PDF: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats Simple Stats Tracker: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker 59-Minute Practice Plan: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/59minuteplan

Questions? isaak@playready.golf

Studies referenced: Social facilitation (Zajonc, Bond and Titus 1983) Caffeine and golf performance (Mumford et al. 2016, Auburn) Carbohydrate intake and golf fatigue (2023 randomized crossover) Ironic process theory (Wegner 1994) The Fluid Motion Factor by Steven Yellin (book)

Timestamps 0:00 Why you should expect to play worse in tournaments 1:22 The 3 reasons nobody talks about 4:21 The marathon mindset for your first tournament 5:35 The number one mistake: swing changes before a tournament 6:04 Hayden's tournament prep: show up with the swing you have 10:42 The marathon taper principle applied to golf 11:45 Hayden's 3 keys to course-specific preparation 15:27 Take the longest club you can swing confidently 19:04 How to avoid the snowball after a bad shot 20:48 Hayden's full pre-round warm-up routine 25:58 Your warm-up is not a practice session 28:03 Hayden's first tournament: 9 over to 8 under 31:10 Tip 1: Go on vacation between shots 32:04 Tip 2: Pick one controllable to focus on 33:03 Nutrition: blood glucose drops 10-30% during a round 34:05 Caffeine: 2 strokes better on the back nine 35:35 The 7 mental traps in tournament golf 44:03 Identity pressure and ego-driven shot selection 46:17 Post-round: focus on what went right 48:15 The Play Ready Golf app and founding member pricing

That comes in around 2,400 characters. Plenty of room if you want to add anything back.

What I cut and why: sub-timestamps within sections that were already covered by a parent timestamp (the individual trap numbers 1 through 7 collapsed into the single "7 mental traps" entry since the section plays continuously), mid-section moments that were interesting but not entry points (Cam Young story, Ohio Mid-Am warm-up, Tiger swing change), and anything that was a continuation of a conversation rather than a new topic. I kept every major section shift so a listener scanning can jump to prep, warm-up, mid-round, mental traps, or post-round directly.

Jonathan Keane carries a +2.8 handicap and plays tournaments at Pine Valley, Garden City, and Oakmont. Instead of chasing his own game, he built Mid-Am Golf HQ to cover the most competitive amateur circuit in the country. In this episode, Jonathan breaks down how elite mid-amateurs actually practice, what the reinstatement debate gets wrong, how to break into the invitational circuit, and why NIL money is about to change competitive amateur golf. Follow Mid-Am Golf HQ: @midamgolfhq on Instagram Newsletter: nichegolfhq.com If you want a structured practice plan that fits your schedule, try Play Ready Golf free for 7 days 👉https://playready.golf/the-app 0:00 The reinstatement test nobody expected 0:12 Why a +2.8 covers everyone else's game 1:16 The moment that started Mid-Am Golf HQ 3:06 How COVID accidentally built a platform 4:33 Competitive golf after college hits different 9:57 How a +2.8 actually practices 12:14 The best mid-ams skip the range 13:29 What 9 to 5 golfers get wrong about practice 14:02 The 4-4-4-4 drill method 15:44 Building a newsletter with 82% open rate 18:00 Why some tournaments are a "black box" 20:30 Building Niche Golf HQ (juniors, seniors, events) 24:42 "Glorified travel services" in golf media 26:35 Where the business brain comes from 29:05 What a mid-am event actually feels like 32:00 The Gasparilla: "the perfect amount of hard" 35:55 The reinstatement debate (full breakdown) 41:57 NIL is about to flood the mid-am circuit 42:42 Defending Stu Hagestad 44:33 How to actually break into mid-am golf 49:00 What's next on Jonathan's calendar

Most golfers leave the course convinced their swing cost them strokes. But the 5 biggest mistakes amateur golfers make have nothing to do with their swing. They're decision-based. And they're free to fix. In this episode, we break down the 5 lowest-hanging-fruit mistakes that are silently inflating your scores, from how your range sessions are secretly working against you, to the one shot per hole that's costing you more than any other. If you're a golfer with a 9 to 5 who wants to actually play better without overhauling your swing, this is the episode. Download the free resources we reference in this episode: Simple Stats Tracker: playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker Benchmark PDF: playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/comprehensivestats 59-Minute Practice Plan: playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/59minuteplan The app launches March 29th: https://playready.golf/the-app Timestamps 0:00 Your swing isn't your biggest problem 0:13 Mistake 1: Your range sessions feel productive but aren't 1:43 Block practice vs. random practice (when to use each) 3:54 The 25/25 ball split for a practice session 5:25 Why random practice is supposed to feel hard 7:03 The Spanish flashcard analogy 8:22 Isaak's college 7-iron confession 9:37 Mistake 2: Your approach shots cost twice what your putting costs 11:30 The real scoring hierarchy (approach, putting, tee, chipping) 12:00 Why a 10-handicap should expect to miss 40% of 5-footers 13:24 What watching pro golf does to your expectations 15:13 Scratch golfers only make 70% from 5 feet 17:22 Mistake 3: You don't know your distances as well as you think 18:19 Your best shot is not your average shot 19:02 The Bob Does Sports distance example 19:25 Overdo the opposite to find your real tendencies 20:16 Shoot the front and back of the green, not just the flag 21:52 "There's no long drive contest for 7 irons" 24:16 Mistake 4: The shot after a bad shot is your most expensive 25:05 Blowup holes come from compounding bad decisions 26:43 Phil Mickelson's 8-out-of-10 rule 27:12 Doubles per round by handicap (the real numbers) 28:31 Give yourself time to be mad, then reset 30:30 Mistake 5: You're playing a strategy built for a scratch golfer 33:05 Your system has to match your personality 35:17 Make it simple so it doesn't get in the way of fun 36:17 The 5-mistake recap 37:00 Your swing matters, but it's not the most important thing for scoring 38:38 Hayden's Q school and "boring golf for exciting results"

Domenic Maricocchi works 8 to 5 in commercial lending and just landed 3 straight top 3 finishes at the Ohio Mid-Am, including a win by 5. He holds the University of Dayton 54-hole scoring record and almost made the cut at the US Amateur playing golf once a week. This is how he does it! Follow Domenic: https://www.instagram.com/dmaricocchi/?hl=en Download the free Simple Stats Tracker: playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker Join the Play Ready Golf founding member waitlist (launches March 29): https://playready.golf/the-app 0:00 Banking by day, winning state championships by weekend 0:31 3 straight top 3 finishes at the Ohio Mid-Am 4:28 Winning by 5 at his home course 5:21 From volleyball to varsity golf in one year 8:03 Walking on at Dayton with zero recruiting interest 13:33 73 stroke average, 54-hole program record, then COVID ended it 14:14 His wife's ultimatum that changed everything 17:09 What changes when you lose your practice facility and teammates 19:28 The first thing he cut from practice (and why) 22:28 Pick your speed before your line 25:17 How he preps 2 weeks before a big tournament 26:39 Playing a practice round with 3 future PGA Tour players 29:17 What working golfers get wrong about practice 31:26 Prep for the event, not your swing 36:25 How to play your own game when everyone else looks better 38:40 What he'd tell his college freshman self

A 20 handicap makes 6.6 doubles per round. A scratch golfer? 0.25. That's 12 shots of difference in big numbers alone. In this episode, we break down what actually separates each handicap level using real scoring data. No swing tips. No equipment talk. Just the numbers and the mental shifts that move you forward. TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 The biggest misconception about lowering your handicap 0:37 Why "more birdies" is the wrong goal 1:02 Birdies vs doubles by handicap (the data) 2:44 What a 20 handicap needs to do 3:04 Mental shift: play your own game 3:49 How to use stats to find your weaknesses 4:51 The best way to spend 30 minutes at the range 6:02 What we learned from Christian Brand (Ep. link below) 7:31 The 10 handicap breakdown 9:19 Expectation management for the 10 10:30 Why 10 handicaps hit great shots but still score high 11:30 Approach play expectations by handicap 15:39 The scratch golfer 17:49 Keep your misses manageable 21:01 Putting stats that will shift your mindset 23:24 It all comes down to decision making 25:28 What the 10 handicap should focus on this week 26:30 What the scratch golfer should focus on 28:04 How to NOT get better at golf this year 29:25 Play Ready Golf app launch (March 29th) FREE RESOURCES: Download the Simple Stat Tracker (free): playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker Join the Play Ready Golf app waitlist: https://playready.golf/the-app Founding member pricing locks in for life. Launches March 29th during Masters week. LISTEN TO LAST WEEK: Christian Brand interview (top 250 WAGR, 2x WV Amateur champ): https://youtu.be/ahEGhIGIVvQ

He won the West Virginia Amateur by 21 shots at 22-under par. He's also a State Farm insurance agent, a husband, and a dad who practices 30 minutes a day in his garage simulator. Christian Brand is proof that you don't need 8 hours on the range to play elite golf. In this episode, Christian breaks down exactly how he structures practice around a full-time job. Why 10 minutes of putting drills six days in a row beats one long session. How to build a repeatable process you can fall back on when nothing is working. What he means when he says playing free is just "don't care where the ball goes." And the story behind holing a pitching wedge at the U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine while a boom mic was in his face. TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 Intro 0:23 How does a State Farm agent win by 21 shots? 1:14 What daily life looked like on the Korn Ferry Tour 3:41 How he carves out practice time now (family, business, golf) 6:01 "You don't practice what's fun. You practice what you need." 7:49 Has his practice gotten smarter with less time? 9:08 Why 10 min/day for 6 days beats one 60-min session 10:28 The one putting drill every golfer should do daily 12:10 What amateurs almost certainly get wrong about practice 14:20 His exact process preparing for a big tournament 17:17 How to handle playing better than you're used to 20:37 Listener Q: The Azalea story (driving 100 miles back) 22:28 How to get the most out of a bad round 26:05 The analytical on/off switch in his process 26:42 The U.S. Amateur boom mic story (pitching wedge, hole 9, Hazeltine) 28:03 What "playing free" actually means (7 words) 30:17 His one piece of advice for the next 15 years 31:14 Gasparilla: "like fighting the strongest little person in the world" Christian is a two-time WV Amateur champion, four-time WV Open winner, former Korn Ferry Tour player (67 starts), and has competed in the Round of 16 at the U.S. Amateur and quarterfinals of the U.S. Mid-Amateur. Follow Christian: @seebrand on Instagram Need Insurance in WV? https://www.statefarm.com/agent/us/wv/hurricane/christian-brand-92xc39nydge Play Ready Golf launches March 29, 2026 during Masters week. Lock in founding member pricing (for life) at https://playready.golf/the-app

Most golf stats are lying to you. We break down every major stat category in golf, which ones actually help you score better, which ones are just noise, and the 4 simple stats you can track on your scorecard starting this weekend. Plus, we made a free stat tracker so you never have to guess what to work on again. Download the free Simple Stat Tracker: playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/simplestatstracker Get on the Play Ready Golf waitlist (launches March 29): https://playready.golf/the-app Timestamps 0:00 Stats Trivia Cold Open 0:28 Birdies and Bogeys: 5 PGA Tour Stat Questions 5:17 What Is Strokes Gained? (Real Explanation, No Math Degree Required) 9:51 Strokes Gained Off the Tee: Why the Rough Isn't Your Enemy 14:17 Stop Tracking Fairways Hit. Here's What to Do Instead. 15:49 Strokes Gained Approach: Where Scoring Actually Starts 19:22 Strokes Gained Around the Green: The One Chipping Rule That Changes Everything 25:28 Strokes Gained Putting: Speed, Short Putts, and Why 10-25 Feet Doesn't Matter 31:00 Why Total Putts Is a Useless Stat 34:18 Every Stat You'll See on TV This Weekend, Explained in 10 Minutes 39:52 Feet of Putts Made, Scrambling %, Up and Down: Garbage Stats Explained 43:46 The 4 Stats to Track on Your Scorecard Starting This Weekend

Most golfers think their biggest problem is their swing. Brad Smith, PGA, has spent 38 years proving them wrong. In this episode, we unpack why the mental game matters even if you're a 20 handicap — and what you can actually do about it beyond reading a Bob Rotella book. What you'll learn: What the mental game actually is (and why most golfers completely misunderstand it) Whether a 20 handicap really needs a pre-shot routine The course management mistake almost every amateur makes How to train your mental game when you only have 1 hour per week How to mentally prepare for a round when you've got 10 minutes before tee time Why some golfers play their best when they stop caring Chapters: 0:00 — Introduction 0:22 — What most golfers get wrong about the mental game 2:31 — Does mental game matter if your swing stinks? 7:45 — How journaling will lower your score 19:39 — How to actually practice your mental game 29:03 — Dealing with adversity 39:18 — The financial incentive of swing advice 45:52 — Where to find Brad About Brad Smith: Brad Smith is a PGA teaching professional with 38 years of experience working with golfers at every level. https://firstcutt.com/ https://golfdronline.com/ About Play Ready Golf: Play Ready Golf uses strokes gained analysis and motor learning research to create personalized practice plans for time-constrained golfers. The app launches March 29, 2026 — founding member pricing available now. 🔗 Get founding member access: https://playready.golf/the-app 📧 Join the newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com #golf #mentalgame #golfimprovement #golfpractice #playreadygolf

I had 11 three-putts and a four-putt across 4 rounds at the Ohio Am. I hit the ball great. My putting destroyed me. This is the finale of the Range Series. Hayden and I break down the 3 skills that actually matter on the green: reading, speed control, and face control. I spent years grinding face control drills because they felt productive. Turns out that wasn't my problem! We cover Aimpoint, why speed drills beat gate drills, and a simple pullback drill you can do anywhere that tests all 3 skills at once. The Play Ready Golf app launches March 29th. Get on the waitlist: https://playready.golf/ Timestamps: 0:00 A made putt doesn't mean it was a good putt 5:27 My worst putting season 9:33 How to actually read a green 13:11 Is Aimpoint the problem? 19:29 Speed control is the real skill 22:00 Don't hit the same putt twice 26:08 Face control is the easiest skill 28:09 I practiced the wrong thing for years 33:37 The pullback drill 34:52 March 29th Links & Resources: 🕸️ Website: https://playready.golf/ 📧 Newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/ 📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/play_ready_golf/ 🎶 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/42OckPTUFO9fNurJ6yGx3V?nd=1&dlsi=cfabbe566e9c473c

Phil Mickelson. Jordan Spieth. Seve Ballesteros. These are the guys we watch pulling off miraculous up and downs from impossible spots. So we try to replicate them. The problem? We blade the ball into someone's backyard and lose it forever. In this episode, we continue their four part range series by tackling the short game. You will learn why most golfers overcomplicate chipping and how the best players in the world keep it stupidly simple. In this episode, we cover: Birdies and Bogeys: We debate common myths, like whether short game is about touch and feel, if the bump and run should be your go to shot, and whether better players use fewer wedges. The 90% Rule: Why you should only hit shots you can pull off 9 out of 10 times, and how this mindset saves you strokes. One Club Chipping: What Patrick Cantlay and the pros know about simplifying decisions around the green. Three Drills to Build Real Feel: The carry distance ladder, the 18 hole up and down game, and the landing spot drill that forces you to think before you hit. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro and Pro Golf Updates 03:23 - Game: Birdies and Bogeys 05:00 - Why We Practice Chipping Wrong 06:06 - What Hayden Learned from PGA Tour Players 10:05 - The 90% Rule Explained 12:34 - Why Chipping is About Not Losing Strokes 17:54 - How to Find Your Go To Club 21:42 - Drill 1: The Carry Distance Ladder 23:18 - Drill 2: The 18 Hole Up and Down Game 26:27 - Drill 3: The Landing Spot Drill 28:09 - Outro and App Launch Details Links & Resources: 🕸️ Website: https://playready.golf/ 📧 Newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/ 📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/play_ready_golf/ 🎶 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/42OckPTUFO9fNurJ6yGx3V?nd=1&dlsi=cfabbe566e9c473c

Luke is a 15-20 handicapper who works a 9 to 5. He's not a pro. He's not a coach. He's the guy building the Play Ready Golf app. In this episode, Luke explains why being the worst golfer on the team makes him the perfect person to build a practice tool. He thought his driver was the problem. The data said otherwise. We talk strokes gained, why most range sessions are wasted time, and what 6 months of intentional practice actually looks like. The Play Ready Golf app launches March 29th. Join the waitlist for the biggest discount we'll probably ever offer: playready.golf Timestamps: 0:00 A high handicapper walks into a podcast 0:34 "I'm not a pro golfer" 4:52 Strokes gained in 90 seconds 7:50 Practicing to feel good vs. practicing to score 10:01 His driver wasn't the problem 12:44 You're playing golf swing, not golf 15:08 Who should NOT use this app 20:50 The feature for golfers with no time 22:38 March 29th 🕸️ Website: https://playready.golf/ 📧 Newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/ 📷 Instagram: / play_ready_golf 🎶 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/42OckPT...

You hit great shots on the range for an hour. You think you finally have it figured out. Then you get to the course, chunk your first iron, and watch the dirt fly farther than the ball. Your practice lied to you. In this episode, we continue the Range Series by tackling approach shots. You will learn why "grooving your swing" is actually making you worse and how switching to random practice builds skills that transfer to the course. In this episode, we cover: Birdies and Bogeys: We debate common beliefs like whether you should groove a swing, never hit the same club twice, or always aim at the pin. The Dirt Road Concept: Why your brain creates ruts when you hit the same club 20 times in a row, and how those ruts fail you under pressure. Interleaving: The research-backed method that feels slower on the range but dramatically improves retention on the course. The One Club Rule: A simple diagnostic to reveal your true skill level with any iron. Simulation 9: A specific practice game that mimics real golf by forcing you to switch clubs and targets every shot. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: Why Your Range Sessions Are Lying to You 01:03 - Weekly Check-In & Updates 03:08 - Game: Birdies & Bogeys (Practice Myths) 05:49 - The Trap: What Most Golfers Do Wrong on the Range 09:42 - The Dirt Road Concept (Why Grooving Fails) 14:43 - Interleaving: The Science of "Ugly" Practice 20:40 - The Randomizer: Exposing Your Weaknesses 22:27 - The Simulation 9 Drill 27:10 - Outro & App Launch Details Links & Resources: 🕸️ Website: https://playready.golf/ 📧 Newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/ 📷 Instagram: /play_ready_golf 🎶 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/42OckPT...

The driver is often the most expensive club in the bag, but it is also the most daunting. It is the longest club, has the least loft, and offers no ground assistance, making it incredibly difficult to square up consistently. In this episode, Hayden and Isaac kick off a four-part series covering every club in the bag. They start with the big stick. You will learn why most golfers practice driver incorrectly and how to change your routine to see real results on the course. In this episode, we cover: Birdies and Bogeys: We play a game to debate common myths, like whether distance matters more than accuracy or if you should "drive for show, putt for dough". The Mental Game: Why your pre-shot routine and target selection matter more than your mechanics. Tempo vs. Speed: How swinging smoother can actually help you hit the ball further and straighter. Simulated Pressure: Why you need to create "fairways" on the range instead of hitting into an open field. The Wide Fairway Finder: A specific 10-ball drill you can use today to track your success and identify your tendencies. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro & Winter Golf Updates 05:05 - Game: Birdies & Bogeys (Debating Golf Myths) 08:52 - Why the Driver is the Hardest Club to Hit 15:53 - Step 1: Building a Pre-Shot Routine 17:49 - Step 2: Understanding Tempo vs. Speed 19:41 - Step 3: Creating Fairways on the Range 23:51 - The "Wide Fairway Finder" Drill 27:23 - Outro & App Launch Details Links & Resources: 🕸️ Website: https://playready.golf/ 📧 Newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/ 📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/play_ready_golf 🎶 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/42OckPTUFO9fNurJ6yGx3V?si=5pR5EaPhRhaUmVFK4ITRrQ&nd=1&dlsi=cfabbe566e9c473c

In this very first episode of the Play Ready Golf Podcast, we break down exactly how to set goals for 2026 that you will actually stick to. We know that most golf goals end up like "motivational posters"—they look nice, but they don't help you make the right decisions on a random Tuesday with limited time. We discuss the difference between "outcome goals" (what you want) and "process goals" (how you get there). We also share why you need to lower the friction in your practice routine so you can improve even with a 9-to-5 job. Plus, we reveal our own personal goals for the upcoming season—from fixing Isaak’s putting to Hayden’s quest for more speed.

In this episode:

00:00 - Welcome

00:30 - Why goals usually fail

05:26 - The two types of goals

09:44 - Making practice easier

13:51 - Stop guessing your swing flaws

6:20 - Training your brain

20:11 - Practice vs. Real Golf

28:33 - Our 2026 goals

32:15 - New app announcement

Resources We Mentioned:

Book: Fluid Motion Factor*(Isaak's recommendation)

Gear: The Stack System (Hayden's speed training)

App: Play Ready Golf (https://playready.golf/)

About Us: Isaak (former D2 golfer with a 9-to-5) and Hayden (former D1 golfer playing professionally) created this podcast to help you noticeably improve with the time and resources you actually have.

Stay Connected: Our Play Ready Golf App launches mid-March with special Founders Pricing available through The Masters.

🕸️ Website: https://playready.golf/

📧 Newsletter: https://playreadygolf.beehiiv.com/

📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/play_ready_golf